


Putting It On

by Brumeier



Series: Gay Paree, 1920s [3]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Actors, Alternate Universe - 1920s, Angst, Established Relationship, M/M, Paris (City), Party, Post-World War I, Prompt Fill
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-04
Updated: 2020-07-04
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:20:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 700
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25077511
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Brumeier/pseuds/Brumeier
Summary: LJ Comment fic for 100 Words on the 1920s prompt:Any, any, "Puttin' on the Ritz"In which John drags Rodney to a party at the Ritz to see famous actor Tony Stark, and he gets a glimpse of the damaged man beneath the facade.
Relationships: Rodney McKay/John Sheppard
Series: Gay Paree, 1920s [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1816114
Comments: 8
Kudos: 28
Collections: Bite Sized Bits of Fic from 2020





	Putting It On

The Hôtel Ritz was swinging, restaurants and lounges filled to capacity with well-dressed men and women, the liquor flowing freely, and everything covered in a haze of cigarette smoke. No group was more raucous than that presided over by Tony Stark, in the bar with the leather stools and couches.

Stark himself sat on the bar in full tuxedo, a cigar in one hand and a glass of scotch in the other, pontificating on any topic that came readily to hand. 

“Why’re we here?” Rodney grumbled. “This isn’t our crowd.”

“Because Stark is the best actor of our time, and I wanted to see him in person,” John explained patiently.

He’d never been much for the pictures before the war, but he had a lot of time on his hands these days. He enjoyed action pictures the most – _The Mask of Zorro_ , _Sky High_ , _Avenging Avengers_ – and Stark was the king of that particular genre.

“This is stupid,” Rodney said.

John nudged him with a shoulder. “Don’t be a pill.”

“So there I was,” Stark was saying. “Doug has me at swordpoint, Mary is properly swooning at the bottom of the stairs, and this dog comes out of nowhere and somehow takes down the camera, the cameraman, and poor Mary all in one go. We had to reshoot the entire scene!”

There were gales of laughter in response, much more than was due a story about a wayward dog. John supposed everyone wanted to get in good with Stark. He was a real star, a mover and shaker in Hollywood with a lot of money and political influence.

“Why don’t you tell us how you dodged the war?” someone yelled out.

The entire bar immediately fell silent. John and Rodney exchanged a wide-eyed look.

A woman in a dark blue beaded evening dress, her red hair cut in a fashionable bob, clapped her hands. 

“Barman! Un autre tour!”

That seemed to kick the party back on track, but John noticed that Stark was still sitting on the bar, looking shell shocked. Rodney nudged John. 

“Over there.”

An obviously inebriated man was being forcibly removed, his angry complaints drowned out by the sound of everyone cheering Stark as wine, champagne, and spirits were loaded up on the bar.

“You’re a big fan,” Rodney said. “Did he dodge the war?”

“No, he didn’t,” someone else said.

John hadn’t really paid attention to the people they were sharing one of the long leather couches with, since he’d only come to see Stark, but now he looked at the man sitting on his left. He was muscular and blonde, and he looked a little sad.

“You know him?” John asked.

“We’re friends. In a way.”

Rodney leaned across John. “So did he serve or what?”

“His father wouldn’t allow it.”

“One man can’t dictate to the government,” Rodney said dismissively.

He was wrong about that, as John knew firsthand. His own father had a long reach and plenty of government influence. But in John’s case, military service was seen as a boon, and something a Sheppard man should be proud of.

“He tries to make up for it all, in his own way,” the blonde stranger said. “Some things you can never get back.”

“Make up for what?” Rodney asked.

“His father is Howard Stark,” John replied. 

It was explanation enough. Howard’s company was at the forefront of weaponry design and manufacturing. There was blood on his hands, metaphorically speaking.

“Self-righteous bastard,” Rodney muttered, and John wondered if he’d worked with Stark in his former life.

Up at the bar, Stark was back to his boisterous self, but it wasn’t the same. John could see now that Stark was just another of the walking wounded, though his war wounds were of a different type. How many of his friends had gone off to fight and never returned? How many had inadvertently been killed by a Stark-built weapon?

The woman with the red bob was suddenly standing in front of them. “Steve. Can you convince him to go? He won’t listen to me.”

“Sure thing.” The guy stood up, stretching. “You fellas have a good night.”

John was ready to leave, too. He’d seen enough.

**Author's Note:**

>  **AN:** I just couldn't help angsting this up. The things I do to Tony. ::shakes head:: The party at the Ritz hotel is in the bar now named after Ernest Hemingway, who spent many nights there himself in the 1920s. The people in Tony's story are Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford, two big stars of the silent film era. (Can you imagine Tony kept silent? LOL!)


End file.
